Pictured is one of my favorite television characters. I admit, I am sixteen years old and still thoroughly enjoy the comedy of Spongebob and his friends immature humor. As I continue to watch the show as I grow older I notice more in depth humor. In a general sense, the show is a different type of funny to me than it was when I was five.
One particular episode of Spongebob that demonstrates satire well is Rock-A-Bye Bivalve. In this episode, Spongebob and his best friend Patrick the starfish find a baby scallop in a tree. They name it "Junior" and decide to care for it. Spongebob becomes the mother figure, doing household chores, caring for Junior, and certainly nagging Patrick who represents the father. Patrick goes to work everyday and expects to be pampered when he is at home just like the average married couple. What's so humorous about this episode is how they depict gender roles. Generally the wife complains about how little help she receives from the husband as he returns from work and she wants a break but so does he and meanwhile the baby lacks attention and so on and so forth. A child watching this show may not note the almost obvious link but someone such as me and many others will. This is an example of satire!
Huck Finn also contains its fair share of satire use. Unfortunately, I do not have a clever photo to go along with Huck Finn and satire but stay tuned anyways. Before the book even begins officially Mark Twain sets off on the train of satire. He writes, "Persons attempting to find a motive in this narrative will be prosecuted; persons attempting to find a moral in it will be banished." I find this quote to be funny because I see him mocking the people who over analyze everything. What's so funny is that these people will over analyze the quote mocking the people who over analyze! Brilliant, really.
Now there are many other sources of satire in the real world. Parody, ridicule, sarcasm etc. are all traced back to the general title of satire. Even if you haven't read Huckleberry Finn or seen an episode of Spongebob Squarepants, you have most definitely seen satire. Family Guy, South Park, both also great examples of satire in almost every episode.
Carly Rae Jepsen and her song, Call Me Maybe was a huge hit that almost every huge group did a dance to for Youtube. My cousin, Hannah who is seven now, showed me a clever video mocking the song. It's called Share it Maybe and Cookie Monster from Sesame Street sings about cookies.
Well, that's about all the satire one post can handle! If you're still interested, Google search satire. There are literally millions of examples!
Nice blog Caitlin! Your examples of satire in Spongebob Squarepants definitley helped me to understand the term better. I completley agree when you say that as you watch Spongebob now you see things in a different way. I think this is because most of the humour goes right over young childrens heads however as one gets older you appreciate it more. Also, nice job at tying in Huck Finn and its uses of satire!
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with your blog on Spongebob Squarepants and how when you get older, you begin to see the humor that little children may not understand. I also agree with your analysis of satire in Huck Finn with the beginning few pages before the first chapter even begins. This satire plays a role throughout the novel that it may continue throughout the whole book. Great Blog! - K'naan Mc$w@gg3r
ReplyDeleteI would have never thought of all of those examples of satire before reading your blog. It really helped me understand the concept of satire much more. Not only do I understand satire more but I also understand Spongebob more too. I agree that many of the jokes in Spongebob are more funny to the adults even though it is meant for kids. Overall, I think you tied in Huck Finn to this perfectly! GOOD JOB!
ReplyDeleteGreat job! I agree with Marin when she says she would've never tied satire in with spongebob but you really brought the concept into perspective for me. I also love Spongebob even now when I'm older and i think it is because i fully understand the jokes made by the author. Overall awesome job on the blog and the tie in with Huck Finn made it that much better to read.
ReplyDeleteSpongebob is a excellent example of satire! I feel the writers throw most of the satire in there to appeal to older audiences such as parents or babysitters. They do this to most kids shows anymore. Frankly, I hate watching most little kid shows, but if I catch any type of sarcasm or irony, I'll probably watch the rest of the show! Great post! All of your examples related perfectly to the element of satire and Huck Finn.
ReplyDelete